Lincoln United chairman Rob Bradley pays tribute to Sam Wilkinson following his resignation as manager.

It’s the end of an era at Lincoln United with Sam Wilkinson stepping down this week as first team manager.

Playing at our level, if you’re not familiar with it, might seem to comprise players playing for fun and a few pounds in expenses, two men and a dog watching, and willing anorak volunteers holding a raffle to raise some funds.

Don’t you believe it. I’d happily invite any Sunday League player to come training or even play in a friendly and they’d struggle to last five minutes, such is the speed and strength players in the NPL play at.

If you think you need to devote an hour a week to have an impact behind the scenes you can forget that too, because it takes a large number of skilled people who devote hours and hours of their time and a lot of their own money to keep a club going and to strive to be successful.